In fields of endeavor pertaining to petrochemical plants, refining facilities, upstream production of oil and gas, power plant generation, and other applicable fields, instruments are frequently employed to monitor or sense pressure, flow, temperature, and other process parameters. Frequently, such instruments are required and/or configured to operate out of doors, often in remote or otherwise isolated locations and these instruments may be referred to herein as field instruments. Instrument enclosures may be used to protect instruments, including field instruments.
Conventional instrument enclosures include standard-sized rigid enclosures and customized, removable, soft cover enclosures. Conventional rigid enclosures are not generally suitable for enclosing field instruments that are directly attached to a standpipe or the like. When a field instrument is to be enclosed with a conventional rigid enclosure, the field instrument is first affixed within the instrument enclosure and the enclosure, rather than the field instrument, is attached to the standpipe. Many mounting brackets may be required to arrange the instrument into the rigid box in such a way that allows the instrument enclosure to be opened and closed.
Soft removable covers, often used in warmer climates to wrap around mounted instruments, tubing or tubing bundles, and power and communication wiring, are often closed using either metal rings or extended straps of fabric from the cover itself, which in turn are typically equipped with Velcro. The metal rings may be used to run the strap through the ring and back to a matching Velcro section to secure the strap. To install a soft removable cover, a custom installer is generally required to go to a site, where the installer may have to be escorted from instrument to instrument, and build a custom template to accommodate the instrument body, the manifold to which it is mounted, any necessary holes for both tubing or tubing bundle carrying the process fluid to the instrument, and any power or communication wiring. Due to their high degree of customization, these soft removable covers are often extremely difficult to re-install properly once removed for maintenance or any other reason. As a result, once they are removed from the instrument, these soft removable covers with one-of enclosure mechanisms are frequently not re-installed at all, or are not re-installed correctly, leaving the instrument exposed to the ambient conditions.